


Just a Dream

by ConfusedMuse



Series: Soriel Week Stories [1]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: F/M, Nightmares, Sleepy Cuddles, sorielweek, sorielweek2016
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-24
Updated: 2016-08-24
Packaged: 2018-08-10 18:00:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7855354
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ConfusedMuse/pseuds/ConfusedMuse
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Her dreams don't let her forget.</p><p>Written for Soriel Week 2016! Prompt: Comfort</p>
            </blockquote>





	Just a Dream

**Author's Note:**

> This fic assumes Sans and Toriel have been in a relationship for several months following a True Pacifist ending. Enjoy!

It was the same every time.

Dust slipping through her fingers.

Leftover mismatched shoes.

And flowers. So, so many flowers. They would’ve been beautiful—

If not for the faces of her dead children staring up from between their petals.

 _You forgot about us_ , they intoned.

 _You replaced us,_  they echoed.

Vines wrapped around her legs and arms, pulling her down to their level so that she couldn’t look away. Her son’s face melted in front of her, his eyes turning black and red. He gave her a lopsided smile.

_“How long do you think it will take before the next one joins us?”_

Toriel woke up with a yell, flying upright in bed. She was shaking so much that it took her a moment to register the bony hand resting on her shoulder.

“tori?” a familiar voice asked, groggy with sleep. “you okay?”

But she couldn’t catch her breath. Her mind was already whirling elsewhere. “My child,” she whispered.

“what?”

“I have to find my child!” she said, her voice rising again on the last word.

The next thing she knew, Toriel was out of bed, running down the hallway to Frisk’s door and throwing it open—

But no one was in the room.

Toriel could feel her own breath coming in short gasps now. Her vision swam. She grabbed on to the door for support. “My child,” she gasped. “Where—”

Her hand slipped and she stumbled backwards—

But a strong hand grabbed her arm, holding her up before she could fall.

Toriel reeled away from the touch out of reflex, a fireball appearing in one hand. The harsh light lit the hallway as she turned around, breaking out of their grip—

But the only one there was Sans, looking up at her with a concerned smile.

Toriel’s hand fell a bit, the fireball starting to gutter in her palm. She still couldn’t catch her breath.

“calm down, tori,” Sans said, reaching out for her other hand. His fingers closed over hers with a gentle squeeze. “you gotta breathe,” he said.

The dimming glow from the fireball illuminated her shaking fingers. Toriel took a shuddering breath, squeezing his hand back.

“frisk went to a sleepover, remember?” Sans continued.

“A sleepover?” Toriel repeated.

“yep,” Sans said, running a thumb over her knuckles. “staying up all night and eating junk food and all the other stuff you don’t let them do at home.” He winked.

Toriel laughed a little. She focused on his voice, trying to even out her breathing.

Reality came back to her in bits and pieces. She remembered dropping off Frisk, the plan to pick them up in the morning, their smile and waving hand as they drove away. Frisk was fine. Her child was fine.

But that still didn’t stop the images in her dream from resurfacing in her mind.

The fireball went out, and Toriel pressed her warm hand to her face with a sigh.

“we can stay up too, if you want,” Sans suggested.

Toriel shook her head. “It is fine,” she said. “It was just a silly overreaction.” She let her hand fall from her face and gave Sans what she hoped was a convincing smile. “I am sorry I woke you,” she apologized.

“no problem, tori,” Sans said, returning her smile. “this’ll probably surprise you, but, uh, i’m actually a pretty light sleeper.”

Toriel let out a watery chuckle. “Well,” she said. “I cannot have you miss any more sleep on my account.”

Sans squeezed her hand again, leading her back down the hallway with a shrug. “i do know a few things about bad dreams,” he said.

Even as they settled back into bed, he didn’t let go of her hand.

“Sans…” Toriel began, but cut herself off with a shake of her head.

He paused, looking back at her. “tori?” he asked.

She shook her head harder, the tears coming back. “I miss them, Sans,” she said.

Toriel covered her eyes with her hand before another sob broke out of her mouth. She felt Sans’s grip tighten with the sound.

“I’ve never forgotten them,” she continued when she found her voice again. “And I never will. But sometimes days will go by when I do not think of them, and when that happens… I dream about the truth. _I failed them._  I can never make up for what I did—and what I did not do.”

She tried to say something else, but it was cut off by another sob. Toriel folded into herself, arms hugging her sides and her head bowed into her chest. She felt Sans’s hand move to her shoulder, patting her fur.

“I am sorry,” she said again, looking up at him. “You do not need to be concerned—”

She stopped as Sans wiped a tear off her muzzle. His hand and face froze a second later, as if he hadn’t realized what he was doing.

“i, uh,” he started, pulling his hand back to his chest. Even in the dark room, Toriel could make out a bit of a sheepish blue blush across his cheekbones.

“i’m not good with this kind of thing, but… I’m still gonna worry if you cry, tori,” Sans said. “you don’t have to tell me anything. but… you’ve been there for me, so… i’d like to be there for you.”

Toriel remembered a night when she woke up to Sans shaking and clinging to her as if she’d vanish if he let go.

“if that’s what you want, that is,” Sans finished with an awkward smile.

Toriel wiped the rest of her tears off her face with the back of her hand before smiling back at him, a real one this time.

“A hug would be nice,” she said.

Sans’s smile grew bigger and he opened his arms. “you got it,” he said.

Toriel wrapped her arms around Sans and pulled him in to her.

“I am glad that you are here,” she whispered to him.

“me too,” Sans said, his voice muffled against her fur. “best pillow ever.”

Toriel laughed. “I hope I mean a bit more to you than that,” she said.

He mumbled something, and Toriel felt his hug get a little tighter. She patted his skull and gave him a quick kiss.

She knew that this wouldn’t be the end of the nightmares. But it felt a little better knowing that she’d wake up to someone who would hold her like this.


End file.
